Mail-bag deliverer.



J. H. SWEENEY.

MAIL BAG DELIVERER.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 9, 1909.

Patented Dec. 21, 1909.

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I. H. SWEENEY.

MAIL BAG DELIVEBER.

APPLICATION rum) JULY 9, 1909.

Patented Dec. 21, 1909.

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JAMES H. SWEENEY, OF SI-IELBYVILLE, TENNESSEE.

MAIL-BAG- DELIVERER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 21, 1909.

Application filed. July 9, 1909. Serial No. 506,819;

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES H. SWEENEY, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Shelbyville, in the county of Bedford and State of Tennessee, have invented new and useful Improvements in Mail-Bag Deliverers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to mail bag delivcrers, and one of the principal objects of the same is to provide simple, reliable and eliicient means for delivering a bag from a moving train into a cabinet or receptacle which will hold the bag against surreptitious removal.

Another object of the invention is to provide a mail bag deliverer designed to deposit a bag within a cabinet or receptacle, means being provided for closing the door of the receptacle after the bag has been delivered.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a mail bag deliverer designed to deposit a bag into a cabinet or receptacle having a spring door which is held open for the reception of the mail bag and which is automatically closed after the bag has been deposited therein, said door adapted to be automatically locked to prevent removal of the bag by an unauthorized person.

' The mail bag deliverers in common use deposit the mail bag in a catcher or upon the platform of a station, and in many cases these mail bags have been rifled especially when the mail trains have passed the station during the night.

It is one of the principal objects of my invention to provide means for securing the mail bag in a receptacle so that it cannot be tampered with by unauthorized persons.

These and other objects may be attained 'by means of the construction illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which,-

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a mail bag deliverer made in accordance with my invention, said deliverer being shown connected to a mail car at the door, the latter being shown in section and the cabinet or receptacle for the mail bag being shown open and in elevation. Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the same. Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction indicated by the arrow. Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view taken through the cabinet or receptacle for the mail bag, the door of said receptacle being shown open. Fig. 5 is a horizontal section of the designates the doorway of a mail car,

same on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4:, looking in the direction indicated by the arrow. Fig. 6 is a detail elevation of a mail bag provided with supporting rings at its upper end.

Referring to the drawing, the numeral C11 an upon the inside of the door frame is secured a pair of perforated brackets 2. Mounted to freely rotate in the brackets 2 is a vertical bar 3 having reduced ends pivotally mounted in said brackets. Pivoted to the bar 3 and held in place by a nut 1 is the delivery arm 5, said arm having a stop ring or shoulder 6 and provided with a series of outwardly projecting stop studs 7. Proj ecting outwardly from the arm 5 near the outer end thereof is a pair of supporting pins 8 designed to support amail bag 9, said mail bag having rings 10 secured to the upper end thereof, and said rings being supported upon the pins 8, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. An L-shaped bracket 11 is permanently connected to the bar 3 by means of a nut 12 and a rod 13, said rod being held in connection with the bar 3 by means of the nut 14 and the lock nut 15, said rod extending through the outer arm of the bracket and provided with a nut 16 and a washer 17. Pivotally mounted on the rod 13 is a trip lever 18 held in place by means of a nut 19, said trip lever 18 having a curved upper end 20 and a similarly shaped lower end 21. The upper end of the trip lever 18 is adapted to engage one of the stop studs 7 to prevent rotation of the delivery arm 5.

Mounted upon a post 22 secured at the side of the track at a station is a cabinetor receptacle 23, said receptacle being preferably of rectangular form and provided with a door 2 1 connected to the receptacle by hinges 25. Within the receptacle 23 is a false bottom 26 provided with a series of springs 27 which bear at one end against said false bottom, while the opposite ends of said springs bear against the inner wall of the receptacle. Stop cleats 28 hold the false bottom against displacement. Secured to the false bottom 26 by means of suitable fastenings 29 is a latch 30, said latch extending through a slot 31 in the side of the receptacle. Secured to the door 24 is a latch keeper 32 designed to engage the outer end of the latch 30. A spring 33 is connected at one end to a staple 34: secured to the inner side of the door 24;, while the inner end of said spring is connected at 35 to the inner wall of the receptacle. A trip arm 36 is secured to the side of the receptacle 23, said arm having an enlarged head 37 disposed in the path of the lower curved end 21 of the trip lever 18.

The operation of my invention may be briefly described as follows :The receptacle 23 has its door 24 held open by means of the latch 30 which engages the keeper 32, when the springs 27 are extended, as shown in Fig. 5. WVhen the train passes the receptacle 23, the trip lever 21 which holds the delivery arm 5 against rotation comes in contact at its lower end with the enlarged head 37 of the trip arm 36 and throws the upper end of said trip lever out of contact with the stop stud'T. This permits the delivery arm 5 to rotate and to deposit the mail bag 9 in the receptacle 23. The force of the moving train carrying the bag 9 will throw the same against the false bottom 26 with sufiicient force to compress the springs 27, and as these springs are compressed, the latch 30 is withdrawn from the keeper 32, permitting the door 24 to be closed by the spring 33. A spring lock on the door 24 will prevent access to the receptacle 23 by unauthorized persons.

From the foregoing it will be obvious that a mail bag deliverer made in accordance with my invention will operate efficiently to prevent unauthorized persons from tampering with the mail. lVhile the device can be erected at low cost, it is reliable and eflicient for its purpose and can be used in connection with the various forms of delivery apparatus.

I claim 1. In a mail bag deliverer, the combination of a pivotally mounted delivery arm, a

trip lever for holding said arm against rota tion, a bar for supporting said delivery arm, said bar being pivotally mounted in the door of a"car, a receptacle for catching the mail bag, a spring door on said receptacle, a spring-sustained false bottom, and .means connected to said bottom for holding the spring door open.

2. A- mail bag deliverer comprising a delivery arm pivotally mounted upon a bar adapted to be pivoted within the door of a car, said delivery arm being provided with outwardly projecting stop studs, a trip lever rotation of the delivery arm, supporting pins connected to the outer end of said arm for supporting a mail bag, means for moving said trip lever to permit the delivery arm to rotate and deposit the bag, and a receptacle for receiving the bag, said receptacle having a spring door, and means for closing said door actuated by the force of the bag thrown into said receptacle.

3.. A mail bag deliverer comprising a delivery arm pivotally mounted in a frame pivoted within the door of a car, means for holding the delivery arm against rotation, means for suspending a mail bag upon the arm, means for tripping the delivery arm to deposit the mail. bag, a receptacle for the mail bag provided with a spring actuated door, a false bottom mounted on springs within the receptacle, a latch carried by said bottom, and a keeper for engaging said latch carried by the door.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature i in presence of two witnesses.

JAMES H. SWEENEY.

\Vitnesses A, M. PIoKLn, J. E. H'UsoRAvn.

adapted to engage said studs to prevent the 

